Crossing the Bridge
by SPNxBookworm
Summary: A lot of tension is there between Dean and Sam after their run in with the specter. Will they be able to diffuse it in time to save the world again? Lots of brotherly moments and vulnerable Dean and Sam. Hurt!Sam too ;) Set a week after Southern Comfort. :) (Supernatural season 8)


**A/N 1 : Firstly, thanks a lot guys for the amazing reviews on my first fic! I love you all so much! Now, this is just another one of my whacky ideas roaming around in my head. Third, I'm both a Sam and Dean girl and (SPOILER ALERT!) I'm kinda glad that in the last episode the boys came to a sort of truce where Sam left Amelia and Dean told Benny that this is where he draws the line. I kind of wanted it to be a bit more brotherly though. I don't like the fact that a lot of the fans are (excuse the language) **_**bitching**_** on Sam about not looking for Dean. So…here is something related to what I'd have liked to see happen I guess…I mention again, I have no problem with the way it's going now and anyway….I can't change it…**

**A/N 2: I LOVED the last episode and I know the writers have a lot in store for us, but well, here it is anyway. I just had to get this out…Do excuse any grammatical errors. I try to correct as much of it as I can. :-) I did a fair amount of youtube tours to see that I got the dialogues right. **

**Disclaimer : I don't own Sam or Dean or any of the other characters (unfortunately). All things supernatural belong to Eric****Kripke. I salute you Kripke!**

* * *

_Benny's been more of a brother to me this past year than you've ever been!_

No. It couldn't be.

_Cas let me down, YOU let me down. The only person that hasn't let me down is Benny. _

Sam felt like his head was going to explode. Ever since they had the run in with the specter, all that Sam could think of was Dean pointing his gun at him and listing out all his failures.

_Let's go through some of Sammy's greatest hits._

Sam closed his eyes, sitting on the bed, laptop on his lap. He rested his head against the headboard trying to stop the memories from last week pouring into his head. This was the problem when he had nothing to do. All the stuff that he was trying not to pay attention to would come raining down on him.

The outburst at Dean after the hunt, near the Impala was something he wished had not happened but it was too much for him that time. He was not angry at Dean. He knew that Dean was hurt that he didn't even try to look for him, but he had his reasons. Reason he knew that Dean would never understand.

He was glad that Dean was out at the moment. They had been running short on supplies and Dean offered to take up the errand. He knew that just like him, Dean was finding it hard to bear the unnatural silence that had been cast onto the two of them.

"Here's your pie and there's your change sir."

"Thanks.", said Dean.

He slowly made his way towards the motel, laden with grocery bags. They had been running short on meds and their first aid kit needed re-filling. The emergency food stock they kept had been depleted. Also, as it was almost time, Dean thought to collect their dinner from the nearby diner.

He had Sam's rabbit food as he called it. He always wondered how Sam ever managed to eat that stuff. And he had a double cheese burger and some pie. This was going to be a good day.

Who was he kidding? Sam didn't even look at him in the eye anymore. He had not expected the outburst from Sam. But he had let the matter pass as he didn't want to start another fight, like the millions that they had already had ever since Dean had been out of purgatory.

_You had secrets! You had Benny! _

True. He had Benny. But Benny was the one guy, okay, scratch that, supernatural vampire that he could trust APART from Sam. Benny had saved his life millions of times in Purgatory. He wishes that Sam would understand why he still maintained the connection. But as far as their luck and encounters with trying to trust the fugly, he couldn't blame Sam for being suspicious.

_Since then, you've got on your high and mighty and you have been kicking me ever since you got back! _

He didn't mean to be such a bitch. But after all they had gone through, all the crap they had been through, they had NEVER given up on each other. Never. He just didn't understand why Sam gave up so suddenly that he didn't even TRY.

_But that's over. So move on or I will._

No. He didn't want Sam to leave. He needed him. More than before apparently. He couldn't forget the look on Sam's face when he had said that. Sam had been very straightforward and one look in his eyes and Dean knew that Sam meant it.

Trying not to think of all the events of last week, he quickened his pace and made his way to his baby, the Impala.

* * *

Sam had dozed off against the headboard and jerked awake as he heard the door slam.

"Oops, sorry Sam. Didn't mean to wake you."

"What?", said Sam blinking sleepily. "No, it's okay. I was waiting for you to come back anyway. I found a hunt in the area. And since we still don't have any leads on the tablet, I think we should go check it out. "

Just what they needed to try and ease a bit of the tension, thought Dean.

"That's great. So what's the story?"

"Well", said Sam, falling back to their old, laying down the info, routine and feeling relieved for a bit of communication between them, "there have been a lot of missing person's reports in the area."

"How does that make it our type of case?"

"I'm getting to that. All of the people have disappeared near a particular area, Dean. There is a warehouse just a few miles away from the spot."

"And?"

"And, you may not remember but it's exactly the same warehouse you were held in. Remember the djinn?"

"I try not to remember Sam. So what, you think we may have another djinn on our hands?"

"It could be. The police haven't found any other leads so I guess it worth investigating."

"And the place is run down and in ruins. Yeah you're right. It's mostly a djinn. Great. Lucky we have a huge supply of lamb's blood then right?"

Sam rolled his eyes.

"I know a guy. Let me see what I can do."

It was great to be back onto their familiar hunting behavior. Dean just hoped that it would last.

* * *

A few hours later they were at the entrance to the warehouse. Seeing the building again made Dean shiver involuntarily. It's not like he enjoyed the last trip to this place. Slowly and steadily they made their way into the warehouse. Finding the entrance to the basement, they took out their silver knives, Sam opened the jar of lamb's blood he had managed to get his hands on, and they dipped their knives in it.

They cautiously made their way into the basement. Senses on high alert and knives at the ready, they looked around the basement. They saw all the missing people hanging from the pipes, tied by their hands. Another sweep around the room and they concluded that the djinn wasn't there.

Dean quickly made his way towards the victim's while Sam kept watch. There were two teenage girls and a middle aged man. Looking at the man, Dean knew that he was dead. Even so, he checked for a pulse but found none. One of the girl's too was dead. The other one was breathing. Dean had just finished untying her when he heard a crash behind him.

Sam was trying to shake his feelings off. He remembered finding Dean here almost dead. It wasn't very pleasant being back. A little bit lost in thoughts, he didn't see the djinn emerge from the shadows on his left. He caught movement out of the corner of his eye but was a little too late. He felt the djinn close his hands around his throat, and felt himself being thrown bodily towards the other end of the room.

Sam felt the breath rush out from him as crashed onto the wall and slid to the floor. Trying to blink the dullness from his vision, and ignoring his aching back, he tried to get up. Before he could so much as lift a finger, a hand closed around his neck constricting his airway. Suddenly he was face to face with the djinn. He saw the tattooed face and saw the eyes turn blue as the djinn raised a hand towards Sam.

Sam put all his strength against the djinn's raised hand, the knife having slid out from his grasp. But with the djinn choking him, he was starting to lose against him. The hand was inches away from Sam when suddenly the blue in the eyes of the djinn died out and his death grip on Sam's throat slackened. Sam slid to the floor gulping in as much air as his lungs would allow him.

"Sam! Sammy, you okay?"

"Dean?" Sam couldn't hear him properly. His shoulder was on fire.

"Yeah Sammy. You alright?"

"Don't know, my shoulder…"

"Shit!"

Sam tried to look at his shoulder and saw a large nail sticking out of his shoulder. It had to be at least 7 to 8 inches. It must have happened when the djinn had picked him and smacked him against the wall holding his neck. Dean was inspecting the wound, trying not to pay attention to the red now slowly soaking onto Sam's jacket.

"It's not so bad. I'll have to pull it out Sam. Try not to move. It's only a flesh wound luckily as far as I can tell. But you know it's going to hurt."

"Yeah. I know. Just get it over with.", said Sam bracing himself.

"Okay."

Dean hated to be the one doing this, but they had no other choice. They had to get the nail out before getting to the motel. The girl was still unconscious and would have to be dropped off at the hospital on the way.

"On three, okay?"

"O…Okay…"

"One, two, three." And Dean pulled at the nail.

Sam gritted his teeth against the pain, but as the nail slowly made it way out of he couldn't stop the scream from escaping his lips.

Sam's screaming was tearing at Dean. But he knew he had to get it out. After a few more minutes and both the boys were panting on the floor. Dean, from exhaustion and relief and Sam, from pain and relief.

"Come on Sammy. We have to get this girl to the hospital before I patch you up."

Dean handed Sam his jacket.

"Keep pressure on that."

Sam slowly got up, trying to get rid of the dizziness threatening to overpower him. It faded away. Ignoring the pain he followed Dean towards the exit. Dean kept looking back at Sam, girl in his hands, making sure that Sam didn't decide to fall asleep on the way to the Impala.

* * *

They were at the motel. Sam had passed out on the way to the motel after dropping the girl at the hospital. He had become dangerously pale. Dean all but gunned the Impala towards the motel. He had managed to get Sam inside before he collapsed. He pulled Sam towards the bed and cut away the jacket and shirt covering the wound. He inspected it. No infection had set in so far so that was a good sign considering the hygiene rank of the crappy warehouse.

Dean was glad for once that Sam was out, as he had to stitch up the wound, and being on the receiving end, he knew it hurt like a bitch. Sam was out through the whole thing. Dean poured a bit of alcohol on the wound to prevent any setting of infection and a bit of holy water just to be on the safe side. He covered it up with the gauze and packed up the first aid kit.

He made his way to Sam's duffel and opened the side pocket where Sam usually kept the painkillers, so that he could give them to Sam before they both settled in for the night.

He was stunned by what he saw. He had opened a package wrapped in paper, thinking they were the new painkillers he had bought earlier in the day, and out had tumbled the amulet.

The amulet he had thrown out so long ago. The one action out of the many that he had regretted the moment he had done it. He had missed the amulet ever since he had thrown it out.

"D..Dean?"

Dean froze, and slowly turned around, amulet dangling in his hand. Sam spotted the amulet and tried to get up out of bed, but his shoulder seared in pain and he groaned and lay back against the headboard, cradling his arm. His eyes not meeting Dean's.

"Sam. What is this?"

"You know what it is Dean."

"No. I mean, where did you get this?", said Dean sitting down on Sam's bed, dangling the amulet in front of them both. Sam's eyes followed the amulet and rested on Dean.

"I took it from the bin. Right after you left the room."

"What?", said Dean, stunned and just flabbergasted at Sam.

"But how come I've never seen it then? We take stuff from each other's duffels all the time Sam. How come I didn't find it then?"

"Because...I was wearing it all the time, Dean. When you threw it out, I felt like you threw me along with it. I thought it meant more to you Dean. Guess I was wrong wasn't I?", said Sam, eyes filling up with tears.

"No Sam. It meant a lot to me! It was just that present situation and…God…I'm so sorry. I really regretted doing that dude. I missed the amulet ever since I threw it. I went back to get it a while later when you were sleeping but it wasn't there."

"I'm so sorry Sammy."

"No Dean. I'm sorry. I should have looked for you when you were in Purgatory. It's just…."

"What is it Sam? What was it that made you quit the job?", said Dean, desperately wanting to know what the hell was going on in Sam's head.

"You were gone Dean. Kevin was gone. Cas was gone. So was everyone else. Ellen, Bobby, Jo…just everyone. Even if I had to start, where would I, Dean? I had no one to turn to. No one to look up to, to tell me that it was alright. You were dead for all I knew Dean."

"I got into the Impala and all I could sense was YOU not next to me Dean. And every time we tried to bring the other one back, when did that ever work out properly for us, Dean? I…I started seeing Lucifer again."

"You what?!"

"Yeah. A few weeks after…I was driving down some random place, and I looked to my right as a habit, and saw Lucifer there. I nearly crashed the car. I got out, opened my duffel and took out the amulet. The only thing I had of you."

"I kept believing you were still with me, and I put on the amulet and he was gone in a few hours and never came back. So I kept the locket on me."

"Gosh, Sam. Why didn't you tell me all of this before?"

"Because I thought you wouldn't understand. I get why you trust Benny, I do. It was kind of the same with me and…Ruby. But hunting had cost me my family and I just didn't have any more in me to try to bring you back and fail, Dean. I just couldn't do it."

"So I just drove after that. I wasn't paying attention to the road, hit a dog, got him to a vet and I met Amelia. She was lost. I was lost. We kind of fit and we kept each other in one piece Dean."

Finally. Dean finally understood. Sam was openly sobbing now.

"Sam. I'm really sorry. I didn't know it was like that for you."

Dean hugged Sam and was rubbing his back trying to calm his baby brother down. As much as he hated the chick-flick moments, he knew this was a talk he wouldn't be able to avoid. He just didn't picture it ending up like this.

"I'm really sorry Dean. I swear I would have looked for you. I just….couldn't."

"It's okay Sammy, It's alright. Everything is going to be alright."

"Can I ask you something Sam?"

"Yeah"

"Can I have the amulet back?"

"Yeah, of course Dean. It's yours."

"Thanks Sam."

He put the locket around his neck. Sam felt whole again, seeing the locket in its rightful place. He knew the journey ahead was going to be tough. But they had crossed the bridge. They had taken the chance and crossed it together. And for Dean and Sam, that's all that mattered.

**THE END**

* * *

**So…..how is it? I swear I was teary-eyed over the Sam confession. Hope I did a good job. Please do review and let me know! :D PLEASE! :D **


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